Imperius
Imperius, Archangel of Valor, is an angel of the High Heavens and the de facto ruler of the Angiris Council. He has led the Heavenly Host to numerous victories over the Demonic Legion, but his pride and rashness has often cost him. Biography The Great Conflict Over the aeons of the Great Conflict, Imperius trod where other angels dared not. When the war turned in Heaven's favor he was always the first to spearhead the most daring assaults into the Burning Hells. When Hell's legions lay siege to the High Heavens, it was Imperius who rallied his fellow angels to action, always the first to storm out of the Diamond Gates and charge headlong into the scattering armies of Hell. It is written that in one of Imperius's invasions of Hell, Solarion (his spear, forged by Imperius in the heart of a dying star) felled so many demons that rivers of blood flowed throughout the seven realms of the Great Evils.Book of Cain Wrath On one such battlefield,2013-12-01, BlizzCon 2013 – Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Preview Panel Transcript. Blizzplanet, accessed on 2014-01-13 Imperius and all four other Angiris Council members took the fight to their demonic foes. Imperius bested a gigantic one-eyed demon by himself, and the demons retreated to their fortress. Imperius sent the Heavenly Host after them. Tyrael urged caution, but Imperius ignored him and entered the fortress himself. Arriving in the structure's depths, he found his fellow angels dead, and Diablo, Lord of Terror, waiting for him. The two came to blows, fighting each other to a standstill. Diablo commented on Imperius's rage while in battle, wondering aloud if his angelic enemy feared of what the other angels would think of him, if they saw what he truly was; in doing so, Diablo questioned whether "valor" was little more than a manifestation of "rage". Imperius responded that he feared nothing and continued fighting, and if anything, the taunt merely served only to enrage him further. It was at this point that the other Angiris Council members arrived, imprisoning the Prime Evil. Auriel and Tyrael suggested capturing and imprisoning the defeated Prime Evil, for if slain, Diablo would return in time. An enraged Imperius however, declared that demonkind could only be dealt with through blood, and slew the Lord of Terror. It was an act that Auriel declared "sacrilege" and Diablo mocked the angels with his last breaths. Nonetheless, Imperius's actions would later be immortalized in the Tristram Cathedral.Diablo III: Wrath The Pandemonium Loop Imperius was present at the Pandemonium Fortress when Iskatu, a demon in service to Diablo, led an assault on the fortress. Iskatu wore the Pandemonium Loop, a ring given to him by Diablo that sowed fear amongst the angels defending the fortress. Imperius was unaffected by the loop however, and hacked off Iskatu's arm. Iskatu fled the field of battle, and the ring was lost.Diablo III, Pandemonium Loop The Sin War The Great Conflict came to a sudden halt with the disappearance of the Worldstone. It was eventually discovered that it had been stolen by renegade angels and demons led by the archangel Inarius, and that they had used it to create an entire world—Sanctuary. The renegades had even coupled with each other to create a new race—nephalem, and their descendants, humanity. Upon the discovery of this world and its people, the forces of the High Heavens (intent on eradicating the "abominations" they beheld), Burning Hells, and Edyrem met in battle, that was only ended through the sacrifice of the nephalem Uldyssian. Thus, the Angiris Council met to reconsider the fate of Sanctuary and its people. Imperius reaffirmed his belief that the "demonspawn" be eradicated, while Auriel and Itherael voted that humanity be spared. Malthael cast no vote, so all eyes turned to Tyrael. Imperius expected that he would vote for humanity's annihilation, and in the event of a tie, the Angiris Council would carry out its original intent on scouring humanity from existence. Tyrael, much to Imperius's surprise (and resentment), sided with humanity. Imperius, though irritated by how events had gone, nonetheless agreed to honor the council's judgement. And in return for Inarius, he made a pact with the demon lord Mephisto that Sanctuary and its inhabitants be free to choose their own path.The Veiled Prophet Interbellum The millennia following the Sin War were not kind to Imperius. With the pact made between Heaven and Hell, the Great Conflict was brought to a grinding halt, thus robbing Imperius of further opportunities to prove his valor in combat. The rift that Tyrael's actions had caused between them refused to close, and since that time, it is said that Imperius became a highly legalistic and unbending tyrant. Deckard Cain speculated that it was not his intent, but nonetheless, Imperius's actions caused disharmony to creep into the Angiris Council. With the departure of Malthael after the destruction of the Worldstone, Imperius became the council's de facto leader.Diablo III, Archangel Imperius, the Aspect of Valor Twenty years after that event, events between Imperius and Tyrael came to a head, as he demanded that Tyrael account for his interference in the mortal world. The two traded blows, first verbal, then physical, until Tyrael had Imperius at the tip of his own spear. Refusing to bow to Imperius's mandates, the archangel ripped off his own wings and became mortal, in an act that Imperius declared to be sacrilege. Subsequently, Tyrael fell upon Sanctuary, cast out from Heaven.Diablo III, Act II Intro Cinematic Valor and Terror Not long after Tyrael's departure, Imperius found himself looking out from Heaven, to see Diablo before him, possessing the body of a mortal. Not fooled by the disguise, Imperius unleashed Solarion upon the Lord of Terror, revealing Diablo's true form. A form that was nothing like what Imperius had seen in the past, but something else entirely. A singular Prime Evil, with the essences of all seven Great Evils in the one body. Outmatched, it was not long before Solarion had been split in two, and Imperius himself impaled. Despite his wound, Imperius managed to teleport away. What he couldn't do, was prevent Diablo from destroying the Diamond Gates, giving entry to both himself and the forces of Hell also.Diablo III, Act IV Intro Cinematic Despite his wound, Imperius nonetheless attempted to rally the angels to defend their home. As things turned out, Tyrael and his mortal allies had followed Diablo and met Imperius in the Silver City. Imperius blamed Tyrael and the Nephalem for Diablo's invasion, and ignored Tyrael's insistence that, wounded as he was, he could not face Diablo again. He headed off, warning the nephalem to be gone from his sight. At the Crystal Colonnade, Imperius encountered the Nephalem again. After destroying several demons, he warned them to leave (again). Itherael and Auriel dissuaded him somewhat, but Imperius nevertheless threatened to kill the Nephalem should he see them again. And at the base of the Crystal Arch, Imperius and a group of fellow angels threatened to do just that, along with Imperius vowing to deal with Tyrael as well. However, the angels were too late to carry out his threat; by this stage, Diablo had begun to corrupt the Crystal Arch, and the corruption of the source of angelic power caused Imperius and his fellow angels to fall, incapacitated and drained of strength. Tyrael was no longer bound to the Arch, however, and due to this, remained unaffected and was able to allow the Nephalem to continue onward to the peak of the Arch. There, in the terrible fight that ensued, they were able to defeat Diablo and save all of Creation from Diablo's wrath.Diablo III, Act IV Storm of Light Imperius recovered from Diablo's invasion, but remained bitter. Having seen Heaven burn around him and his loyal followers perish, he was deeply impacted by Diablo's actions. Due to his pride, he could not accept that mortals had saved Heaven from destruction. He allowed his shame and anger to feed off one another. Additionally, he refused to acknowledge Tyrael as the Aspect of Wisdom (a position he had taken after Diablo's fall),Book of Tyrael and mocked him for his inability to live up to Malthael's legacy. In the midst of this dissonance the Council discovered the Black Soulstone, which Diablo had used to become the Prime Evil, and now contained the essences of all seven lords of Hell. The Council debated over the stone's fate—Imperius wanted to shatter the stone upon the Hellforge then launch a final sweeping invasion of the Burning Hells. Auriel wanted to seal the relic in a chamber of light and sound, while Itherael was paralyzed by indecision, and Tyrael remained silent. The dissonance between the angels blossomed, Imperius included. Eventually Tyrael spoke—the Black Soulstone had to be hidden in Sanctuary.Storm of Light Reaper of Souls The Reapers attacked the Pandemonium Gate in Heaven, seeking to prevent the Nephalem from following Malthael into Pandemonium. In the aftermath of the fight, Imperius appeared, shocked that Malthael would dare attack his former brethren. That Malthael attacked his own kind shook Imperius far more than the genocidal Reapers on Sanctuary prior to this.2014-05-19, More Info From The Anniversary Dev Stream. Diablo Fans.com, accessed on 2014-05-20 When confronted by the Nephalem, Imperius did not care whether Malthael wanted to destroy humanity, but knew he had to be stopped since, according to the Archangel of Valor, Malthael had grown sick and must be put down for his own sake. Imperius, however, did not have the heart to make such a move and knew that the task would have to fall upon the Nephalem. Imperius led the Nephalem across the Path of War to an Abandoned Siege Camp where from a cliff, the pair saw a battering ram that led to the front gates of the Pandemonium Fortress, which was the only way to breach. Imperius instructed the Nephalem to gather three Siege Runes that would activate the battering ram from the Battlefields of Eternity. Before departing, Imperius warned the Nephalem that even if Malthael was stopped, he would not thank them for it.Diablo III, Act V Imperius later appeared alongside Tyrael, observing Malthael's body disintegrate into ashes after the battle before observing the Nephalem,Diablo III, Act V Ending Cinematic who had since become "one with death." In-game Imperius first appears in Act IV of Diablo III. He has a boss instance of sorts, but no actual combat occurs: when the Nephalem and Imperius are about to start fighting, both he and his angels are rendered powerless as Diablo corrupts the Crystal Arch, therefore severing the entire Heavenly Host's life link. The Wings of Valor aesthetic item are modeled after Imperius's wings. In , talking with him starts The Battlefields of Eternity quest, where Imperius accompanies the Nephalem to Pandemonium, instructing them how to activate the Ram. He also helps to clear the siege outposts of demons. After letting the Nephalem know that even of they kill Malthael, he will not thank them for it, Imperius vanishes, only appearing again in the final cinematic. Still, he sends his angels to assist the Nephalem in battle for the Forgotten Battlefield. A couple of the Crusader's skills appear to be a nod to Imperius. The Falling Sword resembles his iconic rapid descent, and the Laws of Valor are likely named after him. Quotes Personality and Traits Imperius's tactical brilliance encompasses all facets of warfare, from maneuvering armies on the battlefield to leading covert strikes against Hell's outposts. The mere sight of Imperius is enough to embolden angels with valor and strength. His valor is so firm that he can withstand terrors of Diablo, even those that no other angel can. However, Imperius's valor has come with the flaws of pride and arrogance, and when enraged, he may become reckless beyond reason. He has had many arguments with Tyrael that could only be put to rest through Auriel's intervention. When not in battle, Imperius often strategizes and trains other warrior angels in the Halls of Valor, his personal domain in the High Heavens. He possesses a strong hatred of humanity because of their free will — Diablo's assault on Heaven has only added to that hatred, both because it was only made possible by a mortal and because the mortals succeeded in defeating Diablo where he himself has failed. Myriam Jahzia also foresaw that his hatred for the Nephalem would grow even stronger after Malthael was defeated by their hand. In Imperius's eyes, there is only right and wrong, good and evil. There are no shades of gray. Abilities Imperius's abilities include teleportation,, the ability to render other angels silent with a mere gesture, and telekinesis. Solarion, his spear, can be called to his side at a moment's notice. Images File:Imperius vs Tyrael|Imperius vs. Tyrael IMPERIUS.jpg|Imperius, armed with Spear of Valor, standing before the Diamond Gates of the heavenly Silver City File:Imperius2.png|Valor's Wrath ImperiusandSolarian.png Trivia *The word "Imperius" roughly translates as "authority," or "power (to command)," in Latin. *Imperius's role in the Council was possibly inspired by Michael the Archangel, said to be the leader of the Army of God in the Book of Revelation. *He is voiced by Rick Wasserman. References de:Imperius ru:Империй Category:Aspects Category:Diablo III NPCs